The Big Toilet Debate!

This article
is designed to explain the different options of sanitation available for your
narrowboat and should help you decide which system is right for you.

Due to the
nature of boats, human waste has to be stored on board, full stop. Each system
has a form of tank where the waste is stored and then chemically treated before
disposal. It is the method of storage and disposal that is different.

Whatever
system you chose you need to responsibly get rid of the waste. Gone are the
days of chucking your waste into the canal. I’m sure you will agree that
this is for the best! There are many sanitary stations on
the waterway system which are free for you to use at your convenience.

There are
basically 3 types of toilets that can be installed on a narrow boat, well 4 if
you choose the ‘bucket and chuck it’ option which is no more than a bucket
stored under your bed like the old fashioned chamber pots! In today’s modern
world it’s highly unlikely a chamber pot is going to be a desirable choice, so
let’s look at the other 3 possibilities.

Note - Choice
is restricted only by your budget and requirements.

The
cassette toilet AKA Porta Potti*

*A Porta Potti is a trade name of a particular make
of chemical toilet, but it is often used as a generic term.

There are 3
versions of the cassette toilet; free standing, fitted and remote with vacuum
flush. Prices start from around £70.00 but if you have a pressure controlled
pump then you will be looking at around £350.00.

The fact
that the cassette toilet is free to empty and is easy to maintain makes it a
popular choice with many boaters. One down side that applies to all 3 versions
is emptying the cassette.

The base of
the toilet is a cassette container which collects the waste and is removed from
the unit when it needs to be emptied. By keeping an eye on the cassette level
you will know when it’s time to empty it.

Another
problem you may incur if you are miles away from a sanitary station and the
cassette needs emptying you will not be able to do this until you reach the
next one. However, to get around this, have a second / third cassette for these
occasions.

Cassette Free-standing

Advantages

Simple.

No Charge
to empty – there are many sanitation points on the water ways system

Easy to
empty and a relatively clean job

You can
carry a spare cassette and empty the full one at your convenience.

Disadvantages

A full
cassette may be heavy for you to carry.

Air
displaced from the tank when the waste drops in may cause a smell

The rinse
water tank has to be filled up

Doesn’t
look very attractive

The seat
level may be lower than a normal toilet.

Has a plastic
bowl.

Cassette Fitted

Advantages

Same as
the free-standing cassette

looks more
like a household toilet

The seat
level is at a good height

Unit is
very stable.

The rinse
water maybe part of the boat plumbing.

Disadvantages

A full
cassette may be heavy for you to carry.

Air
displaced from the tank when the waste drops in may cause a smell

Plastic
bowl.

Remote Cassette with vacuum flush

With the remote
cassette version the toilets contents are flushed through pipework to a
cassette located elsewhere in the boat.

Advantages

No back
smells

Ceramic
bowl

No cost to
empty

Easy to
empty and a relatively clean job

If you
have a spare cassette, you can empty the full one at your convenience.

The rinse
water is part of the boat plumbing.

Disadvantages

Complex
machinery - very sensitive easily blocked.

Cassette
size 14L

A full
cassette may be heavy for you to carry.

The pump out toilet

Pump out toilets look like home from home toilets. They have a ceramic bowl and this is one reason why they
are so popular, along with the fact that you do not manually have to empty the
tank, the contents are pumped out via pipe work at a pump out station.

Pump out
stations can be found at boat yards, marinas and sometimes along the canal
network. There is a charge for using this service and costs will vary from
station to station, you will be looking at paying somewhere from £15.00 - £20.00
approx.

You can if
you wanted to (but not sure why you would) buy a pump out kit and dispose of
the waste when you get to the sanitation stations. If you decided to do the
pump out with a kit you may as well be using a cassette toilet.
There are a wide range of sophisticated pump out toilets available to buy
with electric flushes, macerator units, and remote tanks. Warning - a number of sanitary stations now have notices
prohibiting this practice.

In case of
emergency; such as if the pump out tank is full and you are not near a
pump out station, consider also carrying a cassette toilet on board, to have
another option until the tank is emptied.

One other
thing to consider with the pump out toilet is carrying the
waste around with you in between emptying, some people find this off
putting and so prefer the cassette toilet which they can empty more regularly.

There are 2
different types of pumpout toilets, the” dump through” and the vacuum air
toilet / compressed air toilet.

Pump out Dump Through

This is where
the toilet is directly over the waste tank; the waste goes straight into the
large tank underneath. The seals do gradually deteriorate, which leads to
smells escaping from the tank. Replacing the seals as you can imagine is not a
pleasant task.

These toilets are in the region of £800.

The Vacuum / Compressed Air Toilets

These are very desirable as they seal off the
waste once the toilet has been flushed with a flap. But with this convenience
comes the high price tag, a vacuum toilet will be around £1000 and an air
compressed loo will be at least £2000!

The compost toilet “The Eco Toilet”

This toilet is the newest option for use on boats, however it has been used on
land for some time. There are a number of companies now selling these toilets,
simply look online and you will be able to view many options.

Prices would be
around £800 up to £1800 depending on the model.
It has been
said they only need to be emptied once a year! Depending on the usage will
depend on how often you need to empty the unit, but you are looking at every few
months to a year rather than every week.
It is very
eco-friendly as it doesn’t use hazardous or environmentally damaging chemicals
and produces excellent compost.
Some of the
models actually separate the urine from the solids, so you can responsibly
disposed of the urine and then the solid matter is composted in the other unit.

Round Up On Toilets

Make sure
you take the time to read the toilets instructions to understand how the system
works and how to maintain it.

Pump
out toilets you carry your waste around with you; cassette toilets can be
emptied daily.

Pumping out
waste is chargeable, whereas cassette waste is free to dispose of.

Other Recent Posts

27 Comments

I'm seriously thinking of purchasing a Eco Toilet for my narrow boat and have been on the internet looking at all the options but feel confused with all the different specs available

Horatio Nelson-Burke | Sat Jan 2, 2016 at 4:08pm

Very interesting post. I've just bought a large canal boat and the only thing that I've been dreading is sorting out and maintaining the WC facilities I've a cassette loo installed but I'll be of to the boat show next week and I'll probably buy an Eco toilet, It looks like it will save an awful lot of work in the long run

Whilton Marina | Mon Jan 4, 2016 at 2:24pm

Hello Paul, you are probably best to talk to a specialist about composting toilets, or join one of the many Canal Forums to get other peoples opinions.

Sue Lees | Tue Mar 1, 2016 at 5:57pm

There's a great group FB 'Compost Toilets for Boats and Off Grid Living'. Lots of us have either bought or got diy compost toilets and we can definitely vouch for them.

Geoff Herbert | Wed Mar 16, 2016 at 6:56am

How much space needed for the compost WC

Whilton Marina | Wed Mar 23, 2016 at 12:40pm

Hello Geoff, Composting toilets take up the same amount of space on a boat as other toilets. However it's best to talk to a specialist about composting toilets.

Mick | Wed Jun 15, 2016 at 6:24pm

Can you get a drop through toilet with a built in macerator that sits directly on top of the tank.

Whilton Marina | Wed Jun 22, 2016 at 11:21am

Hello Mick, it is possible to put a macerator toilet on a narrowboat with a holding tank, it would be best to speak to a company such as Saniflo who supply macerator toilets to discuss the options available.

Bob Terry | Sun Jun 26, 2016 at 7:09pm

We have a drop through pump out toilet on our Narrow boat which works very well but produces extremely foul smells when operated. We tend to operate the flush as quickly as possible to minimise the time the tank is open to the bathroom. This helps but is not a solution. How can we minimise the smells. Or are there any additives we can add to the tank to help. We have tried large bottles of chemicals as used in cassette loo''s but it seems due to size we would need to add it by the gallon. Not particularly cost effective. Any suggestions. Bob Terry

Whilton Marina | Mon Jun 27, 2016 at 3:57pm

Hello Bob, best way of getting rid of the residual solids, which smell is to make sure that you flush plenty of water through the tank during the pump out. Try this;trap a hose under the flap at bottom of toilet (not drinking water hose) turn tap on while the waste being removed from tank, rock the boat gently all the time, if you look through the pump out hose’s sight glass you’ll see how much muck is dislodged initially. Keep doing this until the liquid is runs clear through the sight glass, only works with a dump through toilet not a macerator. For macerator toilet, pump all waste out of the tank, take the pump out hose off the outlet and squirt a few gallons of water back into the tank through the outlet, pump the liquid out again, repeat until liquid comes out clear. Try using toilet fluid which uses bacteria rather than chemicals to neutralise the smell. but, if whoever cleans the toilets in the past used a chemical like bleach, the bacteria is destroyed & this will not work.

Peter Boreham | Sat Sep 10, 2016 at 5:47pm

I have had my narrowboat in The Netherlands this summer, the pump out ( Dump through) toilet has been no problem here. . The highest price I have paid for a pump-out is 2 Euros, most machines seem to be priced at 1 Euro for 3 minutes of pump out. Many towns provide FREE pump out for boats on their moorings. So why is it so expensive to pump out your toilet in RIP-OFF BRITAIN? Perhaps the Environment Agency could answer this.

Whilton Marina | Tue Sep 20, 2016 at 1:36pm

Hello Peter, We can only assume that in The Netherlands the pump out facilities on the waterways there are owned by the state, or are subsidised in some way. In the UK pumpout facilities are generally owned and run by marinas who have to maintain and empty them, and there is obviously cost involved in getting them emptied.

mark Robertson | Wed Sep 21, 2016 at 7:43am

We have a macerator toilet which pumps into a holding tank..Would a Jabsco Twist N Lock regular manual Toilet be a good replacement as I do not like the idea that a small one way valve seems to be the only thing stopping the water supply to our existing toilet from flooding the boat and for peace of mind want to install a toilet without electricity and with a manual turn on/off for water.

Whilton Marina | Mon Sep 26, 2016 at 4:21pm

Hello MarkBest to speak to a supplier of the Jabsco Twist & Lock toilet to get advice on this. Or any good Chandlery should be able to advise you on a suitable alternative to the macerator toilet.

Mark Taylor | Sat Oct 29, 2016 at 4:58am

Over the winter I have decided to use my pump out toilet (rather than the cassette variant over always used in the past) however.... I can't find any sort of sight glass or level indicator ! How can I establish when the time comes to get a pump out done ? Btw it has a "traveller" emblem on a plate at the back of the seat.

Whilton Marina | Tue Nov 1, 2016 at 4:21pm

Hello Mark, You can have fitted a sensor gauge which will indicate when the holding waste tank is full.

C carson | Tue Aug 1, 2017 at 3:42pm

We have a pump out toilet with macerator which has worked perfectly for 3 years. In the last couple of months it has begun to smell. How can we sort this problem out? No bleach has been used.

Whilton Marina | Mon Aug 14, 2017 at 4:35pm

Hello C CarsonWe would advise you to check the seals that may be loose or damaged. It also could possible by a blockage building up. Probably best to speak to the manufacturer of the toilet or try online forums for peoples ideas.

Iza B | Thu Nov 30, 2017 at 1:24pm

Hi, thinking to get a compost toilet fitted to my barge... who can answer the question on where do you get them emptied in and around London?

Whilton Marina | Mon Dec 4, 2017 at 12:04pm

Hi Iza, The whole point of composting toilets is that the waste is broken down into harmless compost which can be used on the garden or disposed of in domestic refuse or recycling systems once it has decomposed enough. In order to ensure that all pathogens or other harmful bacteria are neutralised, the Environment Agency advise that such compost material should be kept on site for 26 weeks. Speak to a supplier of Eco toilets for more information, such as Eco toilets.

John hopkins | Tue Jan 9, 2018 at 3:09pm

I am having a widebeam boat built .can I av a saniflo macerator fitted an normal toilet fitted? If not why?Many thanks

Whilton Marina | Mon Jan 22, 2018 at 4:12pm

Hi John, are you asking if you can have two different toilets fitted?

Mark Meopham | Thu Mar 22, 2018 at 10:26am

We have had Thetford cassette toilet on our Narrowboat but now moving up to a widebeam with a pump out but the boat hasn’t been used in about 4 years. What cleaners / solutions should we use with a pump out?Still Blue & Pink or is there something better?

Gill | Sun Mar 25, 2018 at 11:48am

Any idea of how much it would cost to have a pump out toilet removed, I have seen a boat I want to buy and this is the only thing stopping me.

Whilton Marina | Tue Apr 3, 2018 at 1:37pm

Hello Gill, Toilet treatments come in four basic formulations.Chemical treatments are the most popular because they provide the best odor control. Some include chemicals that kill bacteria, but the best chemical treatments deodorize using chemical reactions with odor-causing molecules. Some contain additives that dissolve waste. They can be added to tanks that contain other treatments without cleaning the tank. Enzyme treatments accelerate the digestion of organic materials in waste and neutralize odors at the same time. Nitrates are environmentally friendly, and are ideal for systems with less ventilation. They speed up the breakdown process and reduce odors. Bio-active treatments contain live aerobic bacteria which break down waste, reproduce and crowd out anaerobic (odor-producing) bacteria, they multiply and continue to work long after treatment is complete. However, the microbes require a well-ventilated and residual free holding tank to survive.

Kate Saffin | Fri Apr 13, 2018 at 4:07pm

A note on free standing cassette loos - Porta Potti and similar. You mention being able to buy space cassettes - I've never been able to find spares for the free standing ones. I think they are geared to camping and short term use. I found the only option was to buy a complete unit, which seemed rather wasteful, and was the start of my journey to composting.

Whilton Marina | Mon Apr 16, 2018 at 11:16am

Hello Kate,Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

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